Emily Harrishttp://wlrn.org
enIsrael Bringing Its Years Of Desalination Experience To Californiahttp://wlrn.org/post/israel-bringing-its-years-desalination-experience-california
Taking the salt out of seawater helped Israel move from the constant threat of drought to a plentiful supply of water, but Israel has learned that desalination is not the only answer.<p>Ben Gurion University's Institute for Water Research is deep in Israel's Negev desert and away from the sea. Prof. Jack Gilron, head of the Department of Desalination and Water Treatment, and other researchers here test concepts in desalination to see if they might hold promise for industrial development.<p>Israel has long sought solutions to the threat of drought.Sun, 14 Jun 2015 13:03:00 +0000Emily Harris51585 at http://wlrn.orgIsrael Bringing Its Years Of Desalination Experience To CaliforniaUnder Cover Of Conflict, Hamas Killed Palestinians, Amnesty Allegeshttp://wlrn.org/post/under-cover-conflict-hamas-killed-palestinians-amnesty-alleges
During the upheaval of last year's war between Hamas and Israel, at least 23 Gazans were deliberately killed by their fellow Palestinians, <a href="https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde21/1643/2015/en/">according to a report out this week</a> from Amnesty International.<p>Amnesty blames the killings on Hamas, which runs Gaza. It says those killed were accused of being collaborators — spies for Israel — and many were awaiting trial.<p>Hamas denies responsibility for the killings.Sat, 30 May 2015 14:00:00 +0000Emily Harris50927 at http://wlrn.orgUnder Cover Of Conflict, Hamas Killed Palestinians, Amnesty AllegesTrying To Organize A Marathon, An Arab-Israeli Woman Runs Into Oppositionhttp://wlrn.org/post/trying-organize-marathon-arab-israeli-woman-runs-opposition
Haneen Radi learned to run by walking.<p>"I used to walk," says the 36-year-old mother of four. "I saw people running and said, I'll try that."<p>Radi took off. In the decade since then she's finished eight marathons, and she now coaches a girls' running club with 80 members.<p>"I'm another person when running," Radi says. "I'm happy, I'm smiling."<p>A few months ago, Radi decided to organize a marathon in Tira, her hometown in northern Israel.<p>"I thought, I'm bringing something very nice to my society," Radi said, surrounded by supporters at a recent rally on Tira's main street.Mon, 25 May 2015 07:59:00 +0000Emily Harris50640 at http://wlrn.orgTrying To Organize A Marathon, An Arab-Israeli Woman Runs Into OppositionFor Israel, Soccer Becomes A Geopolitical Footballhttp://wlrn.org/post/israel-soccer-becomes-geopolitical-football
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has moved to the soccer field. Next week, at the annual meeting of FIFA — the international body governing football — its 209 members are scheduled to vote on a proposal to suspend Israel from international play.<p>Palestinian soccer officials put the proposal <a href="http://resources.fifa.com/mm/document/affederation/bodies/02/60/18/94/fifaagenda2015web_neutral.pdf" target="_blank">on FIFA's agenda</a>, saying Israeli policies hurt Palestinian players and the sport's development and break FIFA's own rules.<p>Mahmoud Wadi, 20, is one example.Wed, 20 May 2015 23:17:00 +0000Emily Harris50454 at http://wlrn.orgFor Israel, Soccer Becomes A Geopolitical FootballWill Israel Charge Soldiers In Gaza Civilian Deaths?http://wlrn.org/post/will-israel-charge-soldiers-gaza-civilian-deaths
By the end of July during last summer's war in the Gaza Strip, more than 3,000 Palestinians crowded into a United Nations-run elementary school in Jabaliya, a northern Gaza town. They had moved there for temporary shelter after the Israeli military warned them to leave their homes.<p>An hour before dawn on July 30, explosions shook the classrooms and the courtyard, all packed with people.<p>Mahmoud Jaser was camped outside with his sons.<p>"We were sleeping when the attack started. As we woke up, it got worse," he said.<p>Shrapnel hit Jaser in the back. Three of his sons were also hurt.Sat, 16 May 2015 11:58:00 +0000Emily Harris50237 at http://wlrn.orgWill Israel Charge Soldiers In Gaza Civilian Deaths?Why Everyone's Talking About Israel's New Justice Ministerhttp://wlrn.org/post/why-everyones-talking-about-israels-new-justice-minister
Among the faces in Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's new right-wing government, one is drawing particular attention: Ayelet Shaked, the new justice minister.<p>Shaked is secular, lives in liberal Tel Aviv, and has a background in the high-tech industry. Ari Soffer, the managing editor of <em>Israel National News</em>, calls her a patriot.<p>"She's a secular Jew, but she's somebody for whom Jewish identity is very important. She represents Israelis who believe very strongly in Jewish values and the Jewish character of the state of Israel," Soffer says.Thu, 14 May 2015 22:16:00 +0000Emily Harris50161 at http://wlrn.orgWhy Everyone's Talking About Israel's New Justice MinisterWith Small Shifts, Israel Eases Restrictions On Some Palestinianshttp://wlrn.org/post/small-shifts-israel-eases-restrictions-some-palestinians
Early one morning a couple of weeks ago, rheumatologist Anas Muhana got into his 2008 tan Mercedes jeep, turned on the ignition and drove from his home in Ramallah to his work at Al-Makassed Hospital in East Jerusalem.<p>It was the first time he had been allowed to do this in 15 years.<p>Muhana is Palestinian. His car has a green and white Palestinian license plate. And in 2000, at the start of the second intifada, Israel stopped allowing cars with Palestinian plates to cross checkpoints from the West Bank.<p>But now, for a select few Palestinians, Israel has eased this restriction.Mon, 11 May 2015 07:43:00 +0000Emily Harris49929 at http://wlrn.orgWith Small Shifts, Israel Eases Restrictions On Some PalestiniansFrom Israel To ISIS: How A Search For A Safe Haven Took A Wrong Turn http://wlrn.org/post/whos-blame-eritrean-refugee-killed-isis-after-leaving-israel
What happened to Tesfai Kidane?<p>The Eritrean migrant came to a <a href="http://www.timesofisrael.com/ngo-3-killed-in-is-video-were-asylum-seekers/" target="_blank">tragic end in Libya</a> at the hands of the Islamic State, but his family isn't sure what path he took to get there or exactly where he was headed.Tue, 05 May 2015 09:02:00 +0000Emily Harris49658 at http://wlrn.orgFrom Israel To ISIS: How A Search For A Safe Haven Took A Wrong Turn Israeli Soldiers: Lax Rules In Gaza War Led To Indiscriminate Firehttp://wlrn.org/post/israeli-soldiers-lax-rules-gaza-war-led-indiscriminate-fire
<p>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZE2XBfwdeg</p>Mon, 04 May 2015 21:41:00 +0000Emily Harris49639 at http://wlrn.orgIsraeli Soldiers: Lax Rules In Gaza War Led To Indiscriminate FireIsraeli Dads Welcome Surrogate-Born Baby In Nepal On Earthquake Dayhttp://wlrn.org/post/israeli-dads-welcome-surrogate-born-baby-nepal-earthquake-day
The sperm came from Israel. It was frozen and flown to Thailand, where a South African egg donor awaited. After the egg was fertilized, the embryo traveled to Nepal and was implanted in the Indian woman who agreed to serve as the surrogate mother.<p>And roughly nine months later, there was a big, bouncing earthquake.<p>The world of international surrogacy is ... pretty complicated.<p>The parents of the earthquake baby are Gilad Greengold and his huband, Amir Vogel Greengold.Wed, 29 Apr 2015 22:20:00 +0000Emily Harris49393 at http://wlrn.orgIsraeli Dads Welcome Surrogate-Born Baby In Nepal On Earthquake DayClearing The Tangled Path For Land Ownership In The West Bankhttp://wlrn.org/post/clearing-tangled-path-land-ownership-west-bank
High on a West Bank hilltop, the extended Dissi family gathered on a recent weekend for a day out in the Palestinian countryside.<p>Aunts, uncles and cousins came to see the half-built weekend home of Taysier Dissi, an electrician and father of three. The concrete-block shell, with windows set and stairs roughed in, is placed just right for the view.<p>This will be the family's getaway from their home in the cramped confines of Jerusalem's often tense Old City.Fri, 24 Apr 2015 20:55:00 +0000Emily Harris49138 at http://wlrn.orgClearing The Tangled Path For Land Ownership In The West BankAnd The Fate Of The Hermaphrodite Goat Is...http://wlrn.org/post/and-fate-hermaphrodite-goat
The male milk-giving goat of Gaza has been turned into meat.<p>Owner Jaser Abu Said sold the goat for the 400 Jordanian dinars (close to $600) that he and his business partner spent on it. He found a buyer willing to slaughter the goat for meat. And he stuck around to witness the goat's demise personally, along with representatives from the Gaza government.<p>Why government officials at a goat slaughtering — which happens pretty frequently in Gaza?<p>The goat appeared to be a hermaphrodite. It looked like a male, with a large build and visible male sex organs. But it also had udders.Mon, 13 Apr 2015 14:48:00 +0000Emily Harris48488 at http://wlrn.orgAnd The Fate Of The Hermaphrodite Goat Is...With Few Choices, Gaza Family Makes Bombed-Out Shell Its Homehttp://wlrn.org/post/few-choices-gaza-family-makes-bombed-out-shell-its-home
In Gaza, reconstruction is happening, but slowly. Months after the war between Israel and Hamas, the main United Nations organization tracking progress, UNRWA, says fewer than half the homes it has assessed as "damaged" have been repaired, and not one of the over 9,000 totally destroyed homes has been rebuilt.<p>Facing few choices, some families have decided to live in what's left of their bombed out homes.<p>It's easy to find them. Gaza City's Shujayeh neighborhood was decimated by Israeli shelling during last summer's war with Hamas.Sun, 12 Apr 2015 11:25:00 +0000Emily Harris48440 at http://wlrn.orgWith Few Choices, Gaza Family Makes Bombed-Out Shell Its HomeA Hermaphrodite Goat Could Be The Ultimate Scapegoathttp://wlrn.org/post/hermaphrodite-goat-could-be-ultimate-scapegoat
The goat trade is a good business in Gaza. Every couple of weeks, Abdel Rahman and his business partner, Jaser Abu Said, buy half a dozen young goats imported from Israel and sell them for meat.<p>Last time, they got something unusual. Of the five goats they bought, for about $600 each, one was a hermaphrodite.<p>By all appearances, it was male, with a large build and visible male sex organs. But it also had udders. And gave milk.<p>"We noticed right after we bought it," said Rahman, in a tin shack rich with a meaty goat scent right next to his animal pens. "We couldn't give it back.Fri, 10 Apr 2015 19:05:00 +0000Emily Harris48388 at http://wlrn.orgA Hermaphrodite Goat Could Be The Ultimate ScapegoatMaking Cheese In The Land Of The Bible: Add Myrrh And A Leap Of Faithhttp://wlrn.org/post/making-cheese-land-bible-add-myrrh-and-leap-faith
In spring, West Bank almond trees bloom white. Dry brown hills turn temporarily green and are dotted with bright wildflowers. The ewes and nanny goats of Bedouin herders that wander the West Bank eat well this time of year.<p>It's cheese season.<p>I first watched a Bedouin woman, Mechchas Bne Menneh, make salty goat cheese last spring, while out on a <a href="http://www.npr.org/blogs/parallels/2014/01/21/264355085/palestinian-herders-pick-up-the-pieces-after-homes-destroyed">story</a> about confrontations between her clan and Israeli soldiers.Sat, 28 Mar 2015 11:39:00 +0000Emily Harris47705 at http://wlrn.orgMaking Cheese In The Land Of The Bible: Add Myrrh And A Leap Of Faith